Digital electric power, or digital electricity, can be characterized as any power format where electrical power is distributed in discrete, controllable units of energy. Packet energy transfer (PET) is a new type of digital electric power protocol disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,781,637 (Eaves 2012).
The primary discerning factor in a digital power transmission system compared to traditional, analog power systems is that the electrical energy is separated into discrete units; and individual units of energy can be associated with analog and/or digital information that can be used for the purposes of optimizing safety, efficiency, resiliency, control or routing.
As described by Eaves 2012, a source controller and a load controller are connected by power transmission lines. The source controller of Eaves 2012 periodically isolates (disconnects) the power transmission lines from the power source and analyzes, at a minimum, the voltage characteristics present at the source controller terminals directly before and after the lines are isolated. The time period when the power lines are isolated was referred to by Eaves 2012 as the “sample period”, and the time period when the source is connected is referred to as the “transfer period”. The rate of rise and decay of the voltage on the lines before, during and after the sample period reveal if a fault condition is present on the power transmission lines. Measurable faults include, but are not limited to, short circuit, high line resistance or the presence of an individual who has improperly come in contact with the lines.
Eaves 2012 also describes digital information that may be sent between the source and load controllers over the power transmission lines to further enhance safety or provide general characteristics of the energy transfer, such as total energy or the voltage at the load controller terminals. Since the energy in a PET system is transferred as discrete quantities, or quanta, it can be referred to as “digital power” or “digital electricity”.
One application of a digital power distribution system is to distribute direct-current (DC) power in digital format and at elevated voltage from the source side of the system to the load side. At the load side of the power distribution system, the DC power is converted from digital format back to traditional analog DC format, using a circuit referred to as a receiver, for use in commonly available power conditioning circuits. Power conditioning circuits, widely known to the industry, take an input voltage and produce a controlled alternating-current (AC) or DC output voltage. One example is a conditioner that takes a 380V DC input and creates a 12V DC output for use in a computer. A power conditioning circuit can also convert a DC input to an AC output, as is commonly found in uninterruptable power supplies or inverters. In its most basic form, a power conditioner is a simple switch that either allows or inhibits current flow.